After entering the carriage, the rest of the journey was somewhat quiet. Aria would glance at me every now and then, only to immediately avert her gaze whenever I was about to turn my head toward her.
Tatsumi, on the other hand, stayed quiet because I had berated him earlier, blaming him for running away without looking back. I made it clear to him that he wasn't worried about us one bit and was far more concerned with joining the imperial army. It hits different when I talk down on the protagonist, hehe. He's been somewhat depressed ever since.
After about thirty minutes of riding through the city, we finally arrived at Aria's family estate. It was so vast that it felt like an eternity before we even reached the mansion itself. Upon entering, Aria told both Tatsumi and me to come and meet her father.
He was an elderly man, likely in his late sixties, with grey hair and a large potbelly. He was dressed in a brown suit and smoking from a pipe. The moment he noticed us entering, he immediately dropped the pipe and instructed one of the butlers to take it away. There was also another woman present who resembled Aria. If I had to guess, she was Aria's older sister. She promptly left the room upon seeing us enter.
"Oh, seems like Aria brought people again," the man said with a grumpy laugh as he gestured for Tatsumi and me to sit down after we bowed respectfully.
"I can't help but bring them home, father. I'm sorry," Aria said softly, apologizing.
"Hoho, it's fine, Aria. I know you enjoy helping people," he replied with a sheepish smile before turning to us. "What are your names, gentlemen?"
"Tatsumi."
"Okun."
"I see… so you're both from across the country, huh. What brought you to the empire?" the man asked. Before I could respond, Tatsumi eagerly started talking, excitement clearly written all over his face. He explained how we came to the empire to join the army and were attacked by bandits along the way.
'Sigh, what a dumbass.'
Throughout the conversation, I simply nodded along and even thanked Aria's father when he promised to help us join the imperial army using his connections, despite knowing he was lying. If I didn't know any better, we would probably be butchered alive by this time tomorrow. Tatsumi, on the other hand, seemed overly excited and carefree, running his mouth nonstop.
"Don't worry, we'll help you find your friends. Tomorrow, I will talk to someone in the military and have you both enlisted," Aria's father said.
"Really!" Tatsumi exclaimed. "Thank you very much!" He bowed repeatedly, forcing me to do the same even though I hated it. That alone proved my point about him. Tatsumi was never a hero nor a villain, he was simply an anti-hero who only cared about himself.
"Alright, Aria. Show your guests to their rooms. I'm heading to my study," Aria's father said as he stood up from his seat.
'More like your butcher room.'
"Okay, father," Aria said, then turned to us and led us out of the room. As we walked down a large hallway, Aria suddenly matched my pace, staying on my left side while Tatsumi walked on my right. For some reason, her shoulder brushed against mine, and I could swear it was intentional but Tatsumi didn't notice any of it. He was too busy daydreaming about joining the imperial army.
"Okun–san, your room is one floor above Tatsumi's room. Are you fine with that?" Aria suddenly asked. I paused, wondering what this bitch was plotting.
"Why is that? We're fine sharing one room, Miss Aria. You've already been generous enough to us," I said with a smile, stylishly declining.
"Okun—sama, why don't you accept Miss Aria's offer? It would be pretty rude to decline when she's been so kind to us," Tatsumi suddenly said, nudging me lightly.
This idiot…
"Tatsumi is right, Okun–san. Besides, there are many rooms available, so it wouldn't be bad if you each take one," Aria added.
Now that I was cornered, I had no choice but to accept. If I remembered correctly, in the series, Tatsumi stayed almost two days at Aria's mansion. I wasn't sure if that would still be the case now. If she tried anything funny and I killed her, it could alter the storyline and make me lose my chance of meeting the Night Raid. I just have to face whatever is coming.
"Thank you for your kindness, Miss Aria."
"It's nothing, Okun–san."
Just as she said, I was given a different room from Tatsumi's, and honestly, it was the most luxurious room I had ever seen in both this life and my past one. Gold adorned every nook and cranny of the room, and the bed was wide enough to easily accommodate ten people.
Lying down on the bed, I closed my eyes and briefly drifted off. My thoughts wandered to Sayo, my wives, and the children back in the village. The bright smiles of Bando, Maya, and Roku made my heart soften.
I will return home after conquering this world and carving my name into history. My dream may sound excessive and selfish, but it's something I truly want if I'm to create a better world for myself and my family. I could've stayed in the village and lived peacefully with my wives, carefree but the fear of the unknown made that impossible, especially when I knew what the future held. Our village was already heavily taxed by the empire and barely scraping by. Once they could no longer keep up, Prime Minister Honest would send his dogs to wipe them out in genocide.
Suddenly, I heard the door to my room open. When I looked over, Aria stepped inside, wearing nothing but see-through lingerie that revealed her porcelain-smooth skin and perky, erect nipples.
—
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